This Photograph
by Kounellii
Summary: The Bronzies browse through their old stuff. Ch4: Hyoga and Ikki decide to spend vacation their own way. Seiya is worried about their friendship's future, but with Shiryu & Shun's help, they blackmail the two back! Shion and Dohko impart some wisdom too.
1. Printed Memory

**Look at This Photograph**

Mav's comments: Love that song, "Photograph" by Nickelback. I just watched **Reign Over Me** and laughed and cried so hard (I'm such a sap)! During the scene when Dr. Johnson yells at his fellow dentists, I clapped after his speech and heard some tearful laughs (oro?) in response. Based on OFFICIAL Saint Seiya pictures. EDIT: Eris changed to Ellie, thanks to AuroraExecution. EDIT 7/20/10: With the new feature Export, I've edited this directly on FFN. FYI I'm narrating in present tense, so of course, anything that's happened in the past or earlier is in past tense. I like to tell stories in the present tense.

Disclaimer: I disclaim Saint Seiya but not what I like about it!

-+-+Printed Memories+-+-

There are some things we take for granted. Seiya and the others decided to find out what _exactly_ happened to their old stuff they left behind after they went off to train for 7 years.

"SHUN CATCH!" yells Seiya as he throws a yellowed-looking manga at Shun.

Shun, who just hopped out of the entrance to the attic, catches the manga with both hands. This causes him to lose his balance but luckily, Shiryu, who had listened to the distressed maids' complaints, followed him and broke his fall.

"UGH! Thanks Shiryu!" said Shun gratefully. Turning to his fellow brown-haired saint, he immediately looks agitated. Or as agitated as he can look while still looking so girly.

"_Seiya_! I almost fell down because of you!" cried Shun, pouting as he did so.

"No time Shun! RUN!" yelled Seiya as he rushed forward. Shun flinched as Seiya trips and receives a face-full of the attic floor's dust.

"Hehe! GOTCHA YOU LITTLE DONKEY!" yelled Hyoga. He grabbed onto Seiya's leg in an attempt to stop him from stealing his limited (although not-in-good-condition) edition manga, volume 28 of **Rurouni Kenshin.**

"You are _so_ gonna get it Pegasus!" And with that, Hyoga starts pulling on Seiya's leg.

"HEY! OUCH!" yelps Seiya. He turns over on his back and rubs his aching head.

"Man, what just hit me?"

Hyoga, who's still holding onto Seiya's leg, lets go and picks up the heavy laden book with glossy clear pages off the floor. Brushing away the dust and finally blowing off the remaining particles, he holds it up to the light.

"That's the thing that hit me?" asked Seiya grumpily, taking the mahogany-colored book from Hyoga. Shun and Shiryu weave their way through the boxes on the floor.

Seiya peered over at the cover. In printed gold letters across the top, a quote was printed. He read it slowly out loud.

"It's not important how often we see each other, but how often we think of each other" quote by Heyner ((from **Kingdom Hearts 2**)).

The four teenagers stand quietly, absorbing the words. Seiya, first always to break silence and being known for his patience that's never changed from 4 years old, opens the book. The pages make a loud ruffling noise as he unsticks the pages.

A photograph slips to the floor. Shiryu bends down and picks it up. As he stands up, a gentle smile grows on his face. Shun, upon seeing this smile turn into a grin, looked over the older boy's arm. A tall, serious guy like Shiryu wearing a silly grin calls for some curiosity don't you think?

"Hey, let me see!" begs Seiya as he and Hyoga rush over with what they discovered was not a book, but a photo album. Shiryu and Shun faces the two, who took the photo from them for close inspection. They begin laughing. Except for Seiya.

"HYOGA! I remember this! You threw a soccer ball at my legs and then sat on me!" yells Seiya. However, the other three went from chuckling to full-blown laughing!

You see, the picture was of the younger Bronze saints.

Seiya was flat on the ground with a wincing expression on his face as he was sat on by none other than his partner in crime, Hyoga (not sure if Hyoga would still go along with Seiya's "plans" now). A young, short-haired Shiryu, while chuckling, is bent down offering a helping hand to his crushed friend. Shun with short green hair, is shyly hiding behind Ikki watching the whole scene with an amused expression ((this is an actual official picture you can find on the internet, do you remember it?)).

Hyoga, of course, regains his composure first. Or at least enough to speak clearly.

"Haha… yeah. It was right after our first ever soccer game. I was on your side but you still hogged the ball to yourself."

"You're right Hyoga. It was so funny! Right in the middle of the game, you and Seiya began arguing near the goal post. Then finally Nii-san came and kicked the ball in. Tatsumi and the other maids had to come because you broke into a fight."

Dragon joins in their reminiscing session and takes a seat on one of the old boxes. The Pegasus saint swings his legs over on a backward facing chair and rests his arms on the back of the chair. Andromeda dusts off the top of an old box before sitting on it. He is, after all, wearing white pants. Cygnus unfolds a stool and crosses his legs as he sits.

"Actually, I think that day was full of brawls. We resumed the game with your team losing, Seiya."

"It wasn't MY fault! If Hyoga'd just pass it to me, I would've scored the winning goals!"

"What do you mean, Seiya? Don't you remember? It was _way_ before we trained at Sanctuary and your kicking couldn't even be _called_ kicking," retorted Hyoga, who was now edging his stool over to Seiya.

Seiya's veins began throbbing. The Pegasus saint just couldn't let go, even though he did know he couldn't kick properly back then. All that mattered was that he be remembered as a cool kid, and cool kids can kick. Properly.

"Yeah, so when the ball finally gets passed to me, you started chasing me off the field!" replied Seiya hotly, rocking his own chair over to Hyoga.

Shiryu shakes his head. "Once again, you two. Once again," says Shun as they all thought back to last weekend's **Movie Night at Seiya's **and the earlier jen-ken-po match.

Shiryu and Shun stand up to start looking through the boxes for their old stuff, not just because they don't want to get involved in the feud, but rather before the others find their stuff and blackmail them with their secrets.

Shun opens the box that Shiryu vacated. He reaches in and pulls out two tangled yo-yos. Shiryu, catching the bright colors of the yo-yos, walks over and takes them from Shun.

"I can't believe it's up here!" exclaimed Shiryu. He looks over them fondly, remembering how he had won these off a fair.

"Um… I don't think they're yours…" said Shun slowly, as he remembers a certain incident that will… um, cause certain Bronzies to suffer a Rising Dragon.

"What do you mean, Shun? Of course, they are! Why, they've even got my nam—"

Shiryu trails off as he notices something very odd about his purple dragon and yellow tiger yo-yos. He didn't notice before but with his Saint-trained eyes, he sees that the emblazoned prints are actually a translucent sticker on a plain yo-yo. They're fakes! He also remembers that the last two to play with these were none other than…

"SEIYAAAAAAAAA! HYOGA!" roared Shiryu. Shun steps back a few paces as he sees uncharacteristic pointy demon eyes on his friend.

Shun and Hyoga stop arguing and fall over on their sides as they tried to scramble away from the glowering Shiryu. They could even see his cosmo, which is red instead of his normal green.

"UH-OH!" they yell in unison.

-+-+Bringin' the Old First-Aid Kit+-+-

"Ouch! OUCH!" squeals Seiya, as Miho applies antiseptic to his Dragon-ridden wounds.

He and Hyoga were first stomped on repeatedly since they were already on the floor by Shiryu.

_He must've gotten that move from fighting with Deathmask… ugh!_ thought an aching Hyoga, who received the most stomps since Shiryu was using his right leg and he just happened to be on the right side.

"Ellie, can't you be a little more gentle with those things. It hurts!" whines Hyoga to the young blonde girl who became acquainted with the Cygnus Saint when her body was taken over by an evil woman ((remember her from **Saint Seiya The Golden Apple** **Movie**?))

"Seiya! Stop whining! I can't believe you called me over like that! I was scared to death," said Miho as she slaps Seiya's freshly bandaged arm.

Ellie and Miho were working at the Orphanage like usual. They were watching an "Ugly Duckling" movie when they received distressing and screamingly loud phonecalls from Kido Mansion.

"What? I thought I was gonna die ok!," grumped Seiya as he recalls that after the stomping, Shun had held onto Shiryu from behind, allowing the trounced saints to seek cover.

But Shun wasn't strong enough to hold back an angry Dragon, thus a wild chase ensued. Hyoga, with his quick thinking, saved himself by telling Seiya to take the right corridor, knowing full well Shiryu was lurking around the corner.

After hearing the satisfying scream of Seiya's excruciating agony, the Cygnus saint ran into the hallway phone. Quickly he dialed the Orphanage, hoping the girls would come and take the Dragon off their hands. Hyoga knew that if there's one thing that Shiryu doesn't like, it's seeing a girl cry.

"Hyoga! You lied about being beaten to death just to have me and Miho to beg Shiryu to stop! You even said Shiryu was being controlled!" cried Ellie, as she thought back at how scared the two girls were, hearing Seiya screaming like a girl in the background.

"Yeah Hyoga! YOU BETRAYED ME!"

"Hey, it's every man for himself," replied Hyoga, huffing and turning his face away, only to come face-to-face with Ellie's tear-stained and angry face.

Seiya, looks over at the two lovebirds-not-in-paradise, gets a brilliant idea.

"Y'know Ellie. There's a recent picture of Hyoga that I have. Wanna see?"

Ellie drops her angry expression and gives Seiya a curious look. Hyoga does likewise, but with more of a hint of suspicion in it. Ellie follows Seiya into Hyoga's room. He hands the blonde a picture frame.

"HYOGAAAAAAAAAAAA!" she yells.

"OMG!" as Hyoga gets up and runs through the open front door. Ellie runs past a surprised Ikki, who's holding the door open. He just came from a walk around the park.

"What's their problem?" asked Ikki, immediately slumping on the Victorian couch.

"MWAHAHAHA! Vengeance is mine! I just showed Ellie a picture of Hyoga receiving a kiss from Sailor Moon at that Sailor Moon Anniversary Celebration at Tokyo Dome. It's a good thing I'm a good photographer!"

Ikki perks up and laughs, "Any chance of having any extras of these?"

Shun laughs and Seiya gladly answers, "Heck yeah! I've got _tons_ of poses of Hyoga getting kissed or hugged by every _one_ of those Sailor Scouts. I knew they'd come in handy if he ever pulled anything on me!"

And with that, Pegasus, Andromeda, and Phoenix hurried to Seiya's room, searching for the Sailor Moon photo album.

"Boys!" pouts Miho, hands on her hips.

EXTRA: AuroraExecution, you gave me this sweet idea when you PM'd me that you also like that picture of the Bronzies when they were kids. Precious I tell 'ya! EDIT 7/20/10: the next chapter will explain how and why Shun knows what really happened to Shiryu's yo-yos. PLEASE REVIEW!


	2. Darth Vader Shun

**Look at This Photograph…**

Irrelevant Maverick's comments: I made a boo-boo for first chapter! Hyoga's girlfriend fr: **Saint Seiya The Golden Apple Movie** is actually named Ellie, not Eris. Fire-chan9490, this chapter will explain that 'incident' from first chapter with Shun being EVILLLLL! EDIT 7/20/10: edited for better wording.

Disclaimer: I disclaim Saint Seiya but really, Knights of the Zodiac is not a bad title.

-+-+Darth Vader Shun+-+-

::Rewind 7 years::

A young Hyoga and Seiya just finished begging Shiryu into letting them borrow his yo-yos. They hurriedly ran outside with them.

"YEAH! Check _this_ out Hyoga!" Seiya does a twister with the purple dragon yo-yo, swinging it all around his body and passing the string from hand-to-hand over his legs and head.

Hyoga, knowing a challenge when he heard one, pulls off a roller coaster. Seiya, staring in awe, trips and eats dirt ((once again!))

"Was seeing you get tangled in your own string the thing you wanted me to check out?" asked Hyoga, a touch of sarcasm in his voice.

Seiya tries to swing a punch at Hyoga, who just takes a step back, misses and falls on his face.

"Jeez Seiya. Now how're we going to get you untangled?" Hyoga rubs his head, wondering if he should just ditch his friend. But he just couldn't leave the idiot like this. _Blast my golden heart!_ thought Hyoga.

After a few minutes of untying the string and nearly choking Seiya with it ((although Hyoga might've purposely choked him)), the soon-to-be Pegasus Saint gets free. "This is all your fault Hyoga!" cried Seiya.

"What do you mean? You tripped on your own two feet!" retorted Hyoga, now stepping forward angerly. Seiya pushes Hyoga.

"Alright, that's it! NOW IT'S ON!" The boys start rolling all over the grass, pinching each other's cheeks and pulling. From behind a tree, a green haired boy looks longingly at the colorful yo-yos. Should he take the yo-yos and make a run for it?

Lucky thing for Shun, he had his conscience to make the decision for him. Goodie-Two-Shoes Shun appeared on his right shoulder and began a fierce argument with Darth Vader Shun, who was poking Shun in the cheek with his pitch fork.

**Goodie:** Shun, you should be breaking up your friends' fight, not stealing their toys!

**Darth:** What you talking? (spits) Those yo-yos don't even belong to them!

**Goodie:** Yes, but it's in their possession, isn't it Shun?

**Darth:** (turns Shun's face in his direction) Do you like those yo-yos? (Shun nods) Do you see your friends neglecting their yo-yos? (Shun nods faster) Do you really want those yo-yos to feel _lonely_? (Shun shakes his head)

**Goodie:** (now wielding a spear) SHUN! Go near those yo-yos and I'll, I'll… !

**Darth:** Now, now, violence isn't the answer, right Shun? (Shun nods) Now, GO GET THOSE LONELY YO-YOS MY BOY!

His mini-Shuns disappear in a puff of smoke as he tip-toes his way over to the toys. But he didn't need to be quiet because Hyoga has a hose and is fully shooting Seiya down with water.

**Darth:** "Run Forrest, Run!"

Our naughty little Shun takes off for Tokyo Park. At the park, he began doing various yo-yo tricks, even pulling off some expert techniques. A small crowd gathered around. He "Ooh!"ed and "Aah!"ed the crowd for a couple of hours.

_Oh no, it's almost four 'o clock already! Better get home before Ikki spanks my Winnie-the-Pooh bear_ thought Shun. He continued to "walk the dogs" as he made his way home. But unfortunately for him, the yo-yos got stuck in a crack on the sidewalk.

"Oh poo!" cried Shun, frowning. He yanks it out, causing him to fall backwards while the yo-yos fly up into the air and lands… right into the sewer. "My yo-yos!" ((Who's yo-yos?))

::One bus ride later::

Back at home, his hair is all messed up, his clothes hung limply, and worst of all, little Shun is empty handed. He had gone to Crystal Tokyo Fair, the same place that Shiryu had won his yo-yos. He ran out of money and so, ran out of chances to win the yo-yos. He sees Saori walking with his bear.

"Saori, that's my bear!"

The purple haired girl looks Shun up and down. Taking in his disheveled appearance, she smirks.

"Not anymore it isn't! This is _my_ house so what's yours is mine! MWAHAHAHA!" cackled Saori from behind her hand. Shun gives her the evil eye ((gasp!)). But then she turns around and pulls out something from her little bag.

"But you can have this! I don't like it anymore."

Shun looks down at Piglet, with a missing eye and a torn foot.

"Don't want it!" yelled Shun, throwing the Piglet to the side. But soon a shadow falls over the innocent boy's face as he lets out a maniacal laugh.

"MWAHAHA (cough, cough) HA!"

_REVENGE!_ Shun sneaks into the little bratty princess' room. He immediately spots Saori's purse and snatches all her money. Licking his finger and counting the money ((EEW! BAD SHUN!)), he stuffs it into his sweatshirt's pouch.

Heading for the door, he suddenly stops. Looking at Saori's dolls, he gets a brilliant idea. Brilliant… but EVILLL!

"Thank you, Mister!" quipped Shun at the cashier of the Toys N' Joys store. Outside, Shun carries a plastic bag with some plain purple and yellow yo-yos. He takes a seat on the bench and opens the yo-yo boxes.

_But these aren't the same as the old ones_ thought Shun sadly. Spotting something, he takes out a quarter and inserts it into the sticker slot machine. He promptly receives a PowerPuff Girls sticker. _Well… I do have a lot of money to spend!_ thought Shun, smiling evilly. "Hehe!"

::50 quarters later::

_Coast is clear!_ Shun runs out from behind a curtain to hide behind a statue. He runs and hides behind various sculptures and other ugly furniture until he reaches the lawn table. After putting the sticker of a dragon and tiger on the yo-yos, he places them in plain sight so that anyone who might've been, uh, searching for any missing yo-yos, will find them.

_Mission complete!_ thought Shun, he starts cartwheeling in the hallway.

"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Shun falls flat on his butt.

All the maids and Tatsumi run into Saori's room. They stood, covering their mouths in horror as they saw dolls covered in make-up that made them look as if they came out of a Toy Story War movie. Some even looked like they just came out of a doll hospital.

"Guess they found my little Frankensteins! MWAHAHA! I mean, hehe!" laughed Shun quietly, rubbing his hands together with horns coming out of his head. Terrible!

…**every time I do it makes me laugh**


	3. Hanging Out

**Look at This Photograph **

Irrelevant Maverick's comments: This chapter is also based on an official pic of the Bronzies when they're older:) **My Girl** that I refer to is my other fic, but you don't have to read it to understand this story. Ikki can drive because he's 16 years old and used money from Graude Foundation to pay for it.

Disclaimer: I disclaim Knights of the Zodiac (better known as Saint Seiya).

-+-+Towards the Sunset+-+-

Seiya, Hyoga, and Shun made it up to Shiryu by helping him pick a present and planned a romantic birthday celebration for Shunrei. Although the plan was entirely the others' idea, not Shiryu's.

Earlier, Shun confessed his side of the story and miraculously escaped unscathed just by making puppy-dog eyes! But after Shunrei's birthday, Shiryu forgave all 3 of them for losing his yo-yos.

"You know, you guys really did look good in those black-and-white Chinese outfits. But I also felt like killing you for making Shunrei and I walk for 2 hours!" complained Shiryu ((refers to **My Girl** fanfic)).

Seiya laughs. "C'mon Shiryu, admit it! Having dinner there was the perfect idea."

"And don't forget my gift idea," added Hyoga.

The doors to the living room slammed shut. They turned around.

"Hi Nii-san! Would you like something to drink?"

"NO! I was up in the attic and couldn't find my box of stuff. The maids said _one_ of you guys brought it downstairs."

Seiya and Hyoga traded glances. Remembering the gut-burning bruises Shiryu's yo-yos caused them ((thanks to Shun)), they didn't want to stick around for another blame.

"A box of your stuff?" repeated Shun curiously.

"Yeah, did you guys find my… uh, box with my name on it?" asked Ikki, his face blushing slightly.

Sensing an embarrassing secret coming along, Seiya slyly asked, "Why? You hiding something?"

"N-NO! It's MY stuff, so w-where is it?" stuttered Ikki, strangely eager to keep the others from looking at his keepsakes.

"Hmm… I brought the box downstairs… _somewhere_…" trailed off Seiya, tapping his chin playfully.

"SO GET TO THE POINT!" roared Ikki, his whole face burning red. He knew Seiya liked to blackmail others into getting him things but it was a mystery how the Pegasus Saint ever found out their secrets.

"Oookay, take us out somewhere!"

"Grr… fine! But I have to ask, did you LOOK inside?" growled Ikki, clenching his fist.

Hiding his smirk behind his hand, Seiya replied, "No, but you better treat us too!"

::Chauffeur::

"Seiya, you're definitely pushing it," warned Hyoga as he elbowed his friend in the ribs.

Seiya, Hyoga, and Shiryu were sitting next to each other in the backseat. Shun was in the passenger seat next to Ikki.

"Thanks for the ride Ikki," said Shiryu. His window was open, allowing the breeze in. Unfortunately, the wind was blowing his long hair which was tickling Hyoga's nose.

"Yeah, yeah," muttered Ikki.

Seiya grabbed onto the headrest of Shun's seat. "Y'know, you really surprise me Ikki. I would've thought you'd buy a sports car!"

"Well, I think this KIA Sorento van is just fine," said Shun reassuringly to his older brother. He threw Seiya a warning glance. But the mischievous boy just couldn't resist torturing Ikki.

"Man Ikki, you're such a soccer mom!"

The van skidded to a stop.

"AHHHH!" cried Seiya as he fell forward onto the armrest in the front seat.

Rubbing the bump on his forehead, Seiya glanced to his left. Ikki's cosmo was fiery red.

"Uh-oh!" Not a moment too soon, the brown-haired saint swiftly opened the van door and jumped over the low stone wall. But Ikki was seconds behind him with his hands out in front, eager to strangle Seiya.

"There they go," sighed Hyoga. They hopped out of the van and ran after their hot-headed friends.

"Whoa! Hey!" exclaimed a teenage boy in swim shorts as Seiya and Ikki dashed past him.

"They seem… familiar," wondered the teenager. He turned around. "WAIT! STOP!"

"Coming through!" "Oh sorry!" "Don't mind us!" were the rushed responses from Hyoga, Shun, and Shiryu.

The teenager's long blue hair whipped back as he almost fell onto the sand, but luckily was caught by another teenager with short purple hair.

"Master Julian, are you alright?" asked Sorento ((Siren Mariner of Poseidon)) with crimson eyes full of worry.

"What's wrong?" called a green-haired teenager with a scar on the left side of his face. He and another former Mariner, Io with long pink hair ran up to them.

"I'm fine. Thanks Sorento. Don't worry Isaac, Io, really!" replied Julian with an assuring smile.

He was once controlled by Poseidon and had revolted against the Saints but lost. Now he's returned back to being a normal, but rich, boy with no memory of ever fighting Seiya and the others ((it's in the manga, vol.18)).

_I only saw the back of him, but I think that was Hyoga_, thought Isaac wonderingly. He was Hyoga's fellow trainee back when they were with Camus. But he left them and was known as Kraken Isaac to his fellow Mariners ((vol.17 shows Hyoga's past)).

* * *

Everyone at the beach watched as the five boys ran past, kicking up a trail of sand. _Is it_ _possible to run that fast on sand?!_ thought the crowd of on-lookers.

"ARGH!" Ikki had Seiya in a headlock and using his knuckles, gave him the noogie of a lifetime.

"OUCH! CUT IT OUT IKKI!" whined Seiya, his head sore from Ikki's knuckles rubbing against his head.

Shun pulled on Ikki's arm, while Hyoga tried to pry his fist away from Seiya's aching head. Shiryu grabbed Ikki from behind. They struggled, Ikki walking backwards into the deeper water, trying to dislodge their arms. Finally a large wave came and pushed them forward. Together they tumbled into the sparkling ocean.

Seiya and the others sat up and shook the water out of their hair. After snorting out the water in their noses ((ew!)), they looked at each other.

"Ha…ha, ha, HAHAHAHA!!!" They laughed and clutched at their stomachs and fell on their sides into the water. Everyone's hair was wet and messed up!

"Hahaha, Hyoga, you look like a washed up Sponge-Bob Squarepants!" cackled Seiya. The others were gasping now, trying to stop laughing so they could breathe.

Suddenly a flash caused their eyes to see stars. After rubbing their eyes, Hyoga gasped as he saw who took their picture.

"Well, well. I never thought I'd see the cold and stiff Hyoga be so carefree," said Isaac, a small smile forming on his usually serious face.

"Hey! Why'd you take a picture of us?!" cried Seiya. They stood up and began shaking like dogs, sending water splashing everywhere.

"There is such a thing as a towel," said Sorento as he throws each of them one.

"Thank you Sorento!"

As they each explained how they ended up at the beach, Seiya, Shun, Hyoga, Shiryu, and Ikki joined up with Julian, Sorento, Isaac, and Io for a little barbecue. The hours passed until finally you can only see half of the sun at the horizon.

They were all so full from eating and tired of laughing that they collapsed onto the warm sand, just watching the sunset.

"Oh you guys! Before we leave, let's take a picture together!" suggested Shun to everyone.

* * *

Shiryu stood to the left of Seiya who had his hand in his pocket. Hyoga rested his elbow on Seiya's shoulder. Shun rested his arm on Ikki's shoulder. The white sand contrasted with the pink and orange sky.

"Say: boys rule!" called Isaac from behind the camera.

"BOYS RULE!"

EXTRA: One more chapter, it will be about Ikki's 'stuff':) Please review!

…**every time I do it makes me…**


	4. Seiya's Friends

**Look at This Photograph**

_Mav's comments:_ Thank you to those who have come to read my little story. I can't believe the last episode of SS came out! Special thanks to **Kanonikki101** for reminding me to continue this.

_Disclaimer:_ Masami Kurumada (lucky guy!) owns these Saint Seiya characters. I just write the fanfic that makes the whole world laughXP

-+Los Lonely Boys+-

Standing in the moonlight streaming from the open French windows of the Solo Mansion, Shiryu patted Seiya on the back.

The brown-haired boy closed one eye and looked up at his older comrade. With annoyance. "Shiryu, weren't you talking with that Julian dude about those tattoos of yours?"

The older boy chuckled. "Well I was, but how do you explain a mystical tattoo that appeared on your back without having to go through the usual needle procedure?"

Seiya sighed. He was trying to brush off Shiryu with a sarcastic question but he never could take a hint. Shiryu's smile faded away as he returned to the serious matter that brought him over.

"Why don't you come join us in the dining hall? You being in this library is a sign of an apocalypse."

Immediately, the Dragon Saint dodged Pegasus' punch. But it was a playful one of course.

"I just needed time to think is all! Can't a guy have some alone time every now and then?" mumbled Seiya, but his easygoing smile was returning upon his face. He was glad that someone cared enough to bother him in his solitude.

* * *

Two of their fellow Bronzies were also wondering where Seiya went. Whenever there was a party, you could hear his voice from wherever you were. Even underwater in a 10 feet deep swimming pool.

"Do you think Athena would mind if I spent the rest of my vacation with Isaac for a bit?"

Shun had to leap forward to catch an ancient Greek vase from hitting oblivion that he knocked over with his arm. And it was just as tall as Shun!

"Oops, sorry about that Shun! Didn't mean to startle you," added Hyoga, a little concern in his voice.

Using both arms wrapped around the vase, he righted it up until the vase stood perfectly on its' own. He wiped his hands on his trousers.

"I wouldn't think so. We did tell her that we owe Poseidon a favor for sending us the Gold Cloths in Elysium. But, "and Shun had tried to keep his sadness from showing, "-Seiya invited us over to spend the last of it at his old house in Sanctuary…"

At this Hyoga laughed. "It's not like I won't be able to come over! What's Seiya gonna do? Fling donkey turd at my door?"

Shun laughed too. Though they both knew Seiya was just the guy to do that.

After they stopped laughing, they heard Shiryu's voice. They both glanced at each other and proceeded to eavesdrop on their buddies. Poking their heads around the doorway, Hyoga's above Shun's, they peered over at their friends.

They were seated in comfy red armchairs that they dragged in front of the French window. The sea breeze was ruffling their hair. Seiya was laughing long and hard at something Shiryu said.

In between Seiya's gasping, Shun and Hyoga were able to make out what he was saying. "I remembered that! I thought Hyoga would never get where the ice cubes came from (snorts). Good times, good times!"

By the doorway, Shun had to cover his mouth to keep from laughing out loud. Hyoga's glare had "Knock Out" written all over it. He pushed Shun's head down as he stomped into the dark library.

Shiryu was the first to sense the Swan's murderous intent. He did, after all, tell that story to make the eavesdroppers come out of hiding.

He's smart that way;)

Shun exchanged a knowing smile with the Dragon. But Andromeda tensed up and soon had to pull on Hyoga's arm to keep him from tossing Seiya over the balcony.

"Please stop! Seiya was only having a laugh; it was a pretty funny story. And your cosmos is freezing my arm!!" yelped Shun as small icicles formed at the end of his own elbow.

Hyoga frowned and dropped Seiya. Sighing, he rested the back of his arms on the rail. He shot Shiryu a glare and said, "So Dragon, you think its funny _telling_ stupid stories about me do you?"

With a sly grin on his face, Shiryu responded, "No, I think just the 'stupid stories' are funny."

"Fine, you want to be like that? I'll tell you guys a good story about Shiryu here. We'll see who's funny!!" roared Hyoga. He sat himself up on the balcony rail.

Seiya put his arm around Shun and said, "This I wanna hear!"

:The Next Day:

In the late afternoon, Shun prodded Ikki, awake. With Shiryu as backup, in case volcano-man erupted.

His blue hair was matted together on his head, he was the type to stay in one spot when he slept. He rubbed his eyes. "I'm not gonna pretend that I like being shaken up… Man, where the heck were you guys last night? It's called a pool party for a reason."

Shiryu rubbed his neck. "We were looking for Seiya and found him in the library."

"It's too bad you missed it Nii-san, but we were telling stories about our childhood all night."

At Shun's last sentence, Ikki rolled over and looked at them suspiciously. "Nothing about me right?" he asked in a very low and dangerous voice.

But the calm and placid Shun and Shiryu weren't intimidated. They knew how to handle guys like Ikki.

"Now what was in that box that Seiya took down for you?" Shun grinned.

_Stupid Seiya, teaching my brother to play coy!_ "Thanks for reminding me, I've got me a donkey to burn… Anyway, what's the next blasted thing we're doing before we go back to Sanctuary?"

At this, Shun began to feel sad again. The Bronze Saints were allowed 2 weeks of vacation after they rescued Athena and the world from Hades' mad plan. But they would have to return to Sanctuary to be fulltime Saints since it was taken as a sign that evil things would happen if they try to live a normal life.

Or at least Mr. Kurumada makes it look that way (heh).

Ikki, seeing Shun's gaze turning hollow, mumbled, "So Shun, I figured you can live with me in my house on Death Queen Island. Since you've got more guts now."

Shiryu smirked a little. So this is what Ikki looks like when he's trying to be nice!

"Thanks Nii-san! But there's someone else I'm thinking about living with. And just to let you all know, Hyoga will be staying here with Isaac for the rest of our vacation."

"WHAT?!"

Ikki flung the covers off and shoved the bedroom door open. He practically bowled over Baian, the Seahorse General of Poseidon in the hallway. He followed Hyoga's cosmos into the gazebo in Julian's vast backyard.

"Swan! What's the big idea bailing on us?!"

Hyoga was taken aback. He didn't expect Ikki to be upset over losing _his_ company. Even so, he could feel his blood pressure rising.

"I haven't gotten a chance to make amends with my friend. It's been years and I thought he was dead the whole time! So I'm not about to leave until I do. But that's probably something a loner like _you_ will never understand," replied Hyoga coldly.

The sound of glass breaking startled everyone. Ikki and Hyoga turned to see Seiya's shocked expression. Hyoga hurried to help pick up the glass shards that sprinkled all over the gazebo's floor.

Seiya stared at his blond friend and then spoke. "That's, uh, great Hyoga!"And he bends down to pick up some shards too.

Hyoga continues picking up shards and crushing it into dust as he speaks. "Yeah, I'll see you guys off tonight. I just can't believe how time flies! I've only got 3 days left to spend with Isaac."

"Yeah…" whispered Seiya, crushing the glass shards into dust, letting the wind clear it away from his hand.

* * *

The sounds of applause rang out through the starry night. Sorrento, surprisingly at Shun's request, played a flute rendition of Minuet in G which was composed by Ludwig van Beethoven.

"Bravo Sorrento! It's a sweet song to end the night!" praised Julian enthusiastically.

There were two round tables that were brought outside. On one table sat Julian, Baian, Kryshna, Thetis, Kaysa and Io. They were revived by Poseidon, after he temporarily awakened to witness Hades' Greatest Eclipse put to an end.

On the next table sat Hyoga, who was chatting with Isaac; Sorrento returning to his seat by Shun; Ikki, Seiya, and Shiryu. Ikki and Seiya were both grumpy and agitated since the afternoon.

The Phoenix Saint got up. "I'm leaving for Death Queen Island. Later."

Shun stood up quickly and pulled on his brother's arm. "But now? We still have to-"

Ikki yanked his arm free and turned in the direction of Sanctuary. "Still what?! You guys are grownups now and I don't wanna be babysitting you guys any longer than I already have!"

"Just let him go Shun! If he doesn't wanna see us, then we're better off without him," said Seiya, leaning back in his chair and crossing his arms.

In a flash, he was gone.

Shun continued to stand there with a worried expression on his face. Shiryu placed a hand on his shoulder.

"I think it's time we move on as well. Julian," called Shiryu over to him, who was having a discussion with Io about the existence of Atlantis (ironically). "We'll be taking our leave now. Thank you for your hospitality."

The Solo heir nodded. They exchanged some last sentiments before they walked out the pearly white gates of the Solo estate. Wearing a bewildered expression, he turned to Hyoga.

"Now are you sure your friends don't need a ride? My chauffeur can take them to the airport or to the pier if they're catching a plane or a ship…" offered Julian.

The others laughed. Julian grew even more confused.

"It's not something for you to worry about. They _love_ walking."

Isaac whispered next to Hyoga, "You mean running."

They arrived in front of a little white brick house. The white moonlight revealed cracks running down the sides of the open windows. Seiya bounded joyfully toward it. He swung the old door wide open and spun around on the spot.

"Welcome to my humble home guys!" cried Seiya joyfully, with his arms spread out.

Laughing, Shun and Shiryu joined him, finding Seiya's cheerfulness contagious. They stepped inside, where thankfully, a candle still sat on a wooden desk in front of the window.

"Where's Ikki when you need him? Gah, I'll just rub some sticks together and make a fire," whined Seiya, his old self returning.

"I've got a better idea Seiya. Let's have a campfire, I've got some marshmallows we can toast," said Shiryu as he picked up a bag of it from his drawstring bag. "Hyoga gave me these," he added to answer Seiya's questioning look.

Even now it's hard to picture the long-haired, Chinese outfit-wearing Shiryu in a supermarket.

They all dropped their things onto the floor and fixed up a little campout. After the marshmallows on their sticks were hot enough, they bit into the soft candy. The fire cast a warm glow on the three boys, sitting with their legs stretched toward the fire and the backs of their arms propped on the wooden logs.

"Seiya, what was in Nii-san's box?"

At this, Seiya began choking on his marshmallow which he swallowed painfully after Shiryu slapped him on the back.

"Ah, thanks Shiryu. Ack, my throat hurts! Even hearing someone talk about him makes me gag. Anyway, get a load of this guys! Ikki's first love ain't Esmeralda!!"

The other two stumbled over each other as they moved in closer to Seiya. Their eyes were wide open in innocent disbelief. "You're kidding! Kaysa told me Esmeralda was the only girl he saw in his heart!"

Snickering, the mischievous smile turned into a cheesy grin. "You guys remember that dark-haired chick that we saw going down the stairs in Hades' castle right?"

The Andromeda Saint blinked. "Oh yes! That was the lady that I kind of recognized… I believe her name was Pandora."

To back up a little, Ikki's memories of meeting her returned in his fight against Aiakos, the Garuda Specter. He still didn't tell Shun that the pendant isn't a gift from their mother, but a curse from Pandora.

When Shun asked afterwards, Ikki just said she "held a trident too big for herself and her name was Pandora. That's all!"

"Are you implying that Ikki liked her? Since when?" wondered Shiryu, the information of how the Phoenix could have fallen in love with Pandora in the short amount of time they spent running around down there was beyond him.

Seiya shrugged. "Who knows? I kept asking him why so he finally spills! He just told me, well, not to tell Shun but who cares, that he actually met her when they were kids!"

Shun gasped. "It must have been when I was still a baby. But that still doesn't explain what was in his box."

"I'll admit when I first looked through it, I thought it was a bunch of crap. But lo' and behold! Underneath his boxing gloves were some sketches of Pandora when she was a kid. She was pretty cute too."

"Ikki can DRAW?!" exclaimed Shun and Shiryu in unison.

Scratching his head, Seiya replies, "Yeah, really good too. It wasn't anything like a little kid would draw."

They tried to imagine Ikki quietly drawing a little girl he had a crush on…

"HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!" They rolled around on the grass, clutching their sides. It was bizarre to think about alright!

"So I was thinking that we should prank Ikki and Hyoga. Y'know, get them back for ditching us," said Seiya, as they all lied down on their backs, looking up at the stars.

Rolling over to face the troublemaker, Shiryu slyly said, "I have something of Hyoga's that might interest you."

:The 2nd to the last day:

The Swan Saint wiped his hair down with a towel. He was reading a letter that Thetis handed to him. Very suspicious. _They're gone one night and come all the way here to have someone else hand me a letter the next day. Those idiots could just tell this to me in person…_

"SEEEEEEEEEEIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!"

* * *

Charging at full speed, a white cosmos was running along-side a red cosmos. Hyoga glanced out of the corner of his eye and saw Ikki. A very pissed one at that.

"You here to kill Seiya?"

Ikki roared. "You bet your duck-hide I am!!"

Their target was shaking in his Greek sandals. "Shun, did you have to write that I did it?! Those two are out to kill!!"

"Don't worry Seiya, Shiryu's got a plan."

Ikki and Hyoga dug in their heels hard as they slowed to a stop in front of Seiya's house. Dust was billowing up, like steam from lava flow.

Grabbing Seiya by his toga, he spat, "NOW WHERE'S MY DRAWINGS?! GIVE IT TO ME AND I _MIGHT_ CONSIDER KILLING YOU QUICKLY AND PAINLESSLY!!"

"NOT IF I FREEZE-COFFIN HIS FIRST! HAND OVER MY-"

"-earrings?" finished Shiryu, lightly tossing a pair of silver earrings with a swan design on it. It slides onto the sides of the ears instead of the earlobes.

Blushing hard, the usually icy cold boy pointed furiously and hissed, "Those are mine! And how did you get them anyway?"

With ease, he tossed it over. Hyoga didn't even wait for it to land, he swiped them from midair. He examined them carefully before putting it on. For safekeeping.

Ikki gawked at him, his grip loosening due to the unmanly thing the Swan Saint was wearing. And there were two of them too.

"It's not what you think! My mother gave me these when I was a kid. A lot of people wear them, and some men in ancient cultures did too."

"That's true. Shio's been wearing them for ages, am I right?"

"Dohko, please refrain from calling me that. And yes, I'm wearing them right now," answered Shion who was walking towards them to stand by his old friend. They were investigating the two cosmos that were speeding through Sanctuary.

"See! It isn't girly at all," cried Hyoga triumphantly.

"You didn't sound too proud of it earlier Hyoga," teased Shun. At which Hyoga blushed harder.

"Whoa, your face matches a box of McDonald's fries!" hollered Seiya, instantly running into his house and barricading the door.

It was late afternoon, so Shion and Dohko joined them for some smores, which was an American campout tradition of roasting marshmallows and putting them in between two graham crackers and a piece of chocolate.

Hyoga and Shun ran over to Athens to buy some. And Shiryu returned the sketches of Pandora, after a lot of praising to appease the angry Phoenix.

"Hey Hyoga. Sorry about making you run over here…" said Seiya apologetically. The Swan Saint gave him a smile, waiting for him to finish. "I just- I didn't want you to leave us so soon. I feel like we're all just going to drift away from each other and end up strangers. We haven't even had a barbecue in the 8 years we've been apart yet!"

"I'm sorry too, not that I liked hanging out with you," muttered Ikki. The Swan tried not to laugh for Ikki's sake.

The old Master of Sanctuary was standing behind Seiya, giving him the most fatherly look that he usually reserved for Mu. "You all will live your own lives, Seiya. It's the same for everyone, whether you're a Saint or a fisherman."

"That's right," added Dohko, from his seat on the log. "But if you and your friends still want to see each other, then there's no reason not to. You'll always be together even if you live apart."

Some leaves scattered into the sky, blown up by the wind that passed the Saints. The younger Saints wore a gentle smile on their faces as they nodded to each other.

"Just like you've both been doing for these past 243 years," commented Seiya, now resting a hand on Shion's shoulder. A gesture that made the dignified Shion pout.

"Yes, and I will be having a conference with all of your Masters tonight about your rude behavior."

"NANI?!"

**The End**

**EXTRA: **I remembered as I wrote the ending of this that Ikki wouldn't have remembered Pandora at all after their initial meetingXP This is the longest chap I've ever written too. Please review!


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